


Highway Don't Care (I Do)

by shipskicksandgiggles



Series: tumblr prompts [42]
Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies)
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Driving, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Harley Keener Needs a Hug, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Insecure Harley Keener, M/M, Proposals, Songfic, religious trauma
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-07
Updated: 2021-02-07
Packaged: 2021-03-12 06:41:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,845
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29256129
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shipskicksandgiggles/pseuds/shipskicksandgiggles
Summary: The highway won't dry your tearsThe highway don't need you hereThe highway don't care if you're coming homeHighway Don't Care - Tim McGraw & Taylor Swift
Relationships: Harley Keener/Peter Parker
Series: tumblr prompts [42]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1566982
Comments: 5
Kudos: 55





	Highway Don't Care (I Do)

**Author's Note:**

  * For [PeachyKeener](https://archiveofourown.org/users/PeachyKeener/gifts).



> this whole fic was inspired by a song I hadn't heard before Peachy texted me, and I love them

The only thing Harley missed about Tennessee was how empty the roads were after a certain time. It was rare to see people out after about 10 p.m., so he never felt weird about jumping in his mom’s old car and driving as far as he could, as fast as he could. It was his therapy. 

Driving on the backroads was his favorite. They were somehow quieter, all surrounded by fields and farms. 

New York City doesn’t have backroads, it only has back alleys. Alleys aren’t quiet. 

He was starting to get antsy, and there wasn’t anywhere to go. 

Peter was out. Some SI thing Tony needed help with, he thought. They were going to be out late. 

That was fine. Harley could deal with being alone for a bit. He didn’t need Peter all the time, that would mean he was too clingy. It would mean he has attachment issues. 

Which obviously he doesn’t. 

At some point he got tired of pacing the apartment, and he had the urge to reach for his phone.

He couldn’t text Peter. Peter was busy and would probably be annoyed that his boyfriend couldn’t keep it together for one fucking night without him. 

There were cars down in the garage that he could take. All sleek and shiny and not falling about like his mom’s. 

It felt natural to slide behind the wheel. He hit the power button on his phone so he could at the very least text Peter he was going out, but a red notification flashed up at him. 

So his dead phone got tossed into the passenger seat, and he turned up the radio. He’d be just fine without anyone. He always was. 

People left and he survived. That was how life worked. Honestly, this would do nothing but prepare him for the inevitable of being alone again. 

The second he was out of the city, he rolled down the window and prayed that the wind would take away his insecurity. 

~~~

Peter loved his job, really he did. It challenged him and demanded his full attention, and he would never want to do anything else. 

He did _not_ like being dragged off his couch late in the evening because his boss forgot about some event that he absolutely _had_ to attend. Tony’s words, not his. 

Harley had frowned at him when he went to change into more professional clothes. He always told Peter he worked too hard, that he should take a break. 

Realistically, Peter knew he was right, but he usually didn’t care that much. He was needed, and that was all that mattered. 

Once Harley assured him it was fine, that he would wait to finish the movie until he got back, he headed out the door. 

The event was fine. Boring even. He wasn’t sure why Tony needed him there if he was honest. Maybe Tony just wanted him to have the experience of going to these things. 

He returned to a dark apartment. 

His watch read 11:26 p.m. Harley didn’t usually go to bed until midnight or later, and never until Peter was home if he went out late. He laid his jacket over a chair and frowned. Was he sick? He didn’t remember him feeling unwell earlier. 

Peter managed to make it to their bedroom without turning any lights on, but he walked in to an empty bed. 

A little bit of panic started to set in, and he called Harley’s name. 

No answer. 

He ran back out into the kitchen to see if he’d left a note on the counter. There were no texts on his phone, which felt odd. 

Harley always texted him about everything. Even if he was busy, if Peter was busy, Harley would find something to text him about. 

Peter loved it. 

He tried calling Harley’s phone. It went right to voicemail. 

He sent a text. It didn’t deliver. 

That meant his phone was either turned off or dead. Most likely dead. Harley rarely turned off his phone and typically let him know before he did. 

Something was wrong. He called Tony. 

He picked up on the second ring. “Kid, you just saw me. What’s going on?”

“I don’t know where Harley is.”

There was a beat of silence. “JARVIS says he took a car. He didn’t text you?”

“No, and I don’t know where he would’ve gone.”

“The car he took has a built in GPS. I can track him down if you want.” 

Peter grabbed his keys off the counter and grabbed a warmer jacket than the one from his suit. “Send the directions straight to me. He wouldn’t just take off like this. Not without telling me.”

“Sure kid.”

He raced down to the garage and revved the engine of his bike. According to JARVIS’ tracking, Harley had left the city entirely and gone north. 

~~~ 

He’d taken an exit that led him towards some dirt roads and fields, and he let the land blend together while he cried. 

Everyone always left. Why did everyone always fucking _leave?_

What would happen if he left first?

The tears started to blur his vision, and he decided to pull over. No one was on the road, but he knew better than to keep going. 

He stepped out of the car and walked a bit before he fell to his knees screaming. 

It had been years since he prayed, left with too many scars from the years of Bible Thumpers showing up at his front door telling him his Heavenly Father would replace the one that abandoned him when he was six years old. That the only sisters he needed were the ones he had in Christ. That he should be grateful that his life was still in front of him. 

Who would even listen now that he considered going that same direction?

He should go back. Peter was probably home by now. How would he even begin to explain it to him?

His thoughts were interrupted by the sound of another engine approaching. It came to a stop somewhere behind him, and he heard gravel crunching as whoever it was started walking towards him. 

God, he was probably a mess. 

“Hey,” a voice said. “Are you okay?”

Harley didn’t respond, and the footsteps got closer. They stopped next to him, and whoever it was crouched down next to him. “Sweetheart, can you please look at me?”

He let a pair of hands cradle his face, and was forced to look up at his concerned boyfriend. 

“Peter?”

Peter swiped a thumb over Harley’s cheekbone, wiping away some of the tears there. “Hey angel. Wanna tell me what’s going on? I can’t imagine you came out to the middle of nowhere to make a grocery run.”

He tried to laugh, but it felt hollow. “Felt lonely I guess.”

“So you drove yourself out to where nobody is?”

Harley nodded, not trusting his voice. 

“Why didn’t you text me?” Peter asked softly. “I’d have come home.”

“M’ phone died.”

“Your phone died? Is that all?”

He shook his head. “Didn’t wanna bother you,” he muttered. 

Peter moved to kneel down in front of him. 

“You’re still wearing your suit!” Harley protested. 

He shrugged. “I ran out the door the second I realized you weren’t there. I’ll have it dry cleaned.”

Harley tried to let his head fall again, but Peter caught his chin before he could. 

“None of that,” he tsked. “Talk to me, sweetheart.”

“You were busy. Tony needed you.”

“I think you needed me too, and yet you didn’t say anything.”

He met Peter’s eyes against his better judgement, and flinched at how caring they were. “I’ve always been alone,” he said plainly. _“Always_. I just realized that since I’ve had you, I’ve gotten too used to having someone around all the time, and when you leave, I don’t know how I’ll survive.”

Peter made a sound like he’d been punched in the stomach. “I wouldn’t leave you,” he whispered. “Why would you think I would?”

“Everyone always does. My dad, my mom, my sister, everyone I have ever loved has gone away. I’m not naïve, Peter. It’s only a matter of time. I thought maybe distancing myself would help, but-” he felt another sob shudder through him, and Peter pulled him in until his head rested on his shoulder. 

“Harley David Keener, I want you to listen to me. I would never, ever leave you. Your father was a piece of shit, and the rest of them didn’t know how to deal with the aftermath. You deserve people that love you and care about you.” 

His breath caught in his throat. “Promise?” 

“Promise what?”

“That you’ll never leave.”

“Marry me?”

Harley pushed himself back and stared at him, too shocked to do anything else. 

“I was gonna wait until next week when we were going to get dinner, but I want to be with you forever and always, till death do us part. So what do you say?” He took his hand and brought it to his lips. “Harley Keener, will you marry me?”

“Oh my god, what the fuck is happening?”

Peter looked apprehensive. “If you don’t want to-”

Whatever he was going to say was muffled when Harley kissed him. He let his hands tangle in the hair at the base of his neck and smiled. _“Obviously_ I’ll marry you, you idiot. You’re my best friend, my love, my everything. I just wish I would have known-” He knew he had started crying again, but he couldn’t bring himself to care. 

“Good, because I can’t live without you. I _can’t_ live without you, baby. You can take off all you want, but the highway doesn’t care about you, I do. It can’t hold you or dry your tears, but I can. And I need you to come _home,_ darling. Please come home with me.”

He nodded slowly. “I don’t think I can drive like this,” he laughed. 

Peter looked like he was trying not to smile. “I don’t even know how you managed to get all the way out here in your condition.” He ran his hand across Harley’s face one more time, and he leaned into it. “I drove the bike out here, so your options are to hang onto me, or I can drive the car. We’ll send someone out to tow the whichever one we leave.”

Harley considered his options. “We can take the bike. I want to hold you.”

This time, Peter didn’t hide his laugh. “You might think being clingy is a bad thing, but it’s one of my favorite things about you.” He let him guide him to his feet, and Peter pressed a kiss to his forehead. “I love you.”

“I love you too.” He hesitated for a moment. “Thank you.”

Peter paused halfway to the bike. “What for?”

“For finding me.”

“Nothing to thank me for. I’m with you forever and always, deal?”

Harley grabbed the extra helmet from the storage compartment in the motorcycle. 

“Until death do us part, dear.”

**Author's Note:**

> you can always message me on [tumblr](https://www.tumblr.com/blog/playboyphilanthro-pissed)


End file.
